Deep Insanity decided to address my chief complaint of episode 7 where I pointed out there had been no consequences for Vera’s failure despite the dire threats prior to the mission beginning. Problem is, the only real consequence were the toothless people sitting at the table making noise and the occasional threat but it signified nothing. Even Vera didn’t seem to take anything they said as meaningful and then she just went on doing what she planned to do anyway.
It all kind of makes everything happening feel meaningless. Couple that with the lacking explanations for anything and fairly poor world building and Deep Insanity has some fundamental problems that it just can’t overcome in the time left to it.
And having one character ask another if they know what the death of El-Cee would mean is just frustrating because, let’s be honest, nobody knows and even if you give us an explanation it won’t feel authentic at this point. It won’t be built on anything. You could tell me her death would lead to the end of the world and I’d probably just shrug at this point.
Deep Insanity – Watching the Rest Of This Anime And Expecting It To Maybe Get Better
Anyway, Deep Insanity again has Shigure trying to dig up some info on the XO and so he talks to the woman at the bar he met exactly once and also helps his teammates go through some old pictures. By weird coincidence, the seemingly pointless string of numbers Leslie left Shigure refer to a photo, that Shigure had never seen, and direct him to the place where this episode’s assassination attempt will happen.
I don’t mean to throw rocks at dead characters but why would you give the one person on the team who wasn’t in the photo and didn’t know the location that clue as to where to go? That seems like a severely flawed plan.
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Meanwhile, El-Cee is being taken by her guards through the Asylum to be handed over to someone for some reason and the now one-armed guy who killed Leslie is in pursuit and Vera is also going to lead her team down to intercept. I’d say Deep Insanity was heading toward an exciting three way conflict but the whole thing is just messy and again, we don’t have a clue what significance any of this has or for what purpose one group are protecting El-Cee, another want to kidnap her and the third want her dead.
Those key details missing make it difficult to care.
Also, I’m still not understanding the white haired guy accompanying El-Cee. He’s got a really obnoxious way of speaking and doesn’t seem particularly useful and yet there he is plodding along and making weird pronouncements. I’m actually surprised the people with him didn’t shoot him just to be rid of him because literally he just seems to be there to fill some screen time and have a character who doesn’t talk in monotone.
Glasses guy serves a much better purpose being the one leading El-Cee’s defence. Though again deep Insanity doesn’t give us really anything to connect with him. He’s just good at his job and working to protect El-Cee from threats that exist… because?
Honestly, if I wasn’t this far along, I’d probably drop Deep Insanity. It has well and truly proven it isn’t going to flesh out this world, the characters are poorly constructed, and the plot might come together but it would be too little too late. It just isn’t enjoyable to watch except that much like an unfolding disaster there’s something about it that prevents you from looking away.
I’ll hope that by the end of the season I at least know what El-Cee’s purpose is other than being a MacGuffin.
You can read the full review here.
Images from: Deep Insanity: The Lost Child. Dir. S. Oonuma. Silver Link. 2021
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Karandi James